Sauwmi & Julian
Tell us about your love story: “We like to say we met through mutual friends, but we met on a social media platform that was created by a university student at Queens that wanted to bring university communities together, so people can network and make friends within their university. Both Julian and I attended University of Toronto and got to know of each other via this platform, but actually met because there was a social event planned for U of T specifically. We became friends that day, and here we are, six years later, married.”
What was your favourite part of the day? “Favourite part of the day was the ceremony. The minute our coordinator opened the doors to the chapel I saw Julian at the altar and we both started crying. Then I caught a glimpse of couple of our guests who also started getting teary eyed. I walked down the aisle with both my parents, crying the whole time. Then both Julian and I cried through our vows. He couldn’t get through his, so he shortened it. Yeah, just a lot of crying, but also lots of smiling, happiness; I would do anything to go back to our ceremony and experience it all over again.”
Tell us about any unique aspects: “Our wedding brought 3 cultures together. I am Sri Lankan, and Julian is Italian and Albanian. We incorporated a little bit of everything. Our wedding favours were traditional Sri Lankan fruit cakes, made by my mom and aunts, and individually wrapped and packed into a champagne coloured cake box, and we had a Sri Lankan water ceremony as our entrance into the reception (where the groom’s mother and father welcomes the bride into their family by the mother of the groom offering a glass of water to the bride, as traditional drums are played. Following this both families light an oil lamp to signify the unification of two families). To honour the Italian culture we did the traditional receiving line and played soft Italian dinner music, and to honour the Albanian culture we opened the dance floor up by doing the traditional circle dance (Valle) to Albanian music. The music kept everyone entertained because it bounced from top 40 to Italian music to Sri Lankan music to Albanian music to Soca and Dancehall (I’m a huge fan), and I let my hair down and danced to everything all night long. The entire night was filled with so much love and tradition.”
Did anything go wrong? “The question should be what didn’t go wrong! Overall, we had an amazing wedding and we didn’t notice most/all of the things that went wrong. Things that went wrong were me not having my bouquet for the ceremony, the cake that was delivered was not what we ordered, the pianist arrived late to the reception, there was a snow/ice storm, Julian’s grandfather was taken to the hospital because he fell very ill, and my best friend slashed open her arm after taking a candle centrepiece to her car and was taken to the emergency and got a lot of stitches. Both the groom and I had no idea about most of this until the next day thanks to our coordinators. They kept the day going smooth as possible, which allowed us to have a stress-free day.”
Honeymoon? “We went to Maldives for 8 days, stayed in an over-the-water bungalow and lived our best life. It was a much needed vacation to relax and to celebrate. On the way to the Maldives we spent a day in Dubai, and we went to Sri Lanka for a day to visit my family and introduce Julian to everyone.”
Advice to couples planning their wedding? “Start early as possible, and get a month-of coordinator. No matter how big or small your wedding is, a coordinator can help you every step of the way and take all the stress off your shoulders, which will allow you to relax and enjoy the day.”
Planning & Design: Events by Sauwmi
Photographer: Fox Photography
Venue: The Doctor’s House (Great Hall)
Florist: Lush Floral Boutique
Bride and bridesmaid dresses, and veil: Amanda Lina Sposa Boutique
Transportation: A Celebrity Limousine
Invitations: Vista Print
Bride shoes: Spring Shoes
Décor: Peter & Paul’s Gifts
DJ & MC: Platinum Entertainment Solutions
Groom suit: Per Lui
Hair & makeup: Jen Evoy Makeup Studios
Day of coordination: La Vita Company & Kristine Hardy
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